Dance With Me
by C.M. Higgins
Summary: She was always the loner, minding her own business, never caring what anyone thought. But when a poker bet from across the room sucks her in, will her life be changed in one night, or can she withstand the temptation of a stranger? One-Shot..


**Dance With Me**

**C.M. Higgins**

_She was always the loner, minding her own business, never caring what anyone thought. But when a poker bet from across the room sucks her in, will her life be changed in one night, or will she withstand the temptation of a stranger?_

_So, here's a one-shot story. It's dedicated to a wonderful friend of mine, Rose. She's always been there for me, and I love her a lot. So, this one is for her! I hope you enjoy it. The rating is just in case, because there is some inappropiate language. _

The music was playing, but only she heard it. The blonde haired girl in the back of the music hall sat undisturbed, alone with her own thoughts. She was unnoticed, untouched. And she liked it this way. She didn't talk to anyone, didn't like to share her feelings with anyone. She had only two friends with whom she could confide in, but that was rarely done. Tonight, her two confidences were not there. She had no one to talk to, no one to sit with. Tonight she was alone.

Meanwhile, at the other end of Irving Hall, several newsboys gathered, ready for a good night of poker, gambling, drinking, and woman. Jack Kelly, Racetrack Higgins, Spot Conlon, Mush Meyers, and Kid Blink Parker all sat around one small table, engrossed in a heated poker game.

"You're all going ta hell." Spot Conlon muttered, looking at his cards, then grabbed a few of his chips and put them in the middle.

"At least I'll 'ave friends." Jack Kelly retorted to him, also placing chips in the middle.

"I say that Racetrack will be the jackass an' will put all his chips in." Mush offered, folding. Racetrack smirked at them, and did exactly what Mush had predicted.

"I'm not a jackass Mush. You see, I'll be winnin' all of these nice chips ya all have generously put in fer me, and den I shall win the whole game!" He concluded, putting all his chips in.

"Ya haven't won a game for months!" Jack pointed out to the young Italian. Racetrack punched him in the shoulder and looked at his cards again, a little nervous now, afraid he had made the wrong choice.

"I'll be winning dis one." Kid Blink announced to the table. He winked with his one eye, and then put in only half his chips. Racetrack let out a smirk.

"You're a fuckin' liar!" He yelled happily, almost in a sing-song voice. He wasn't really accusing Blink in an angry manner, but more in a manner of happiness and shock that he might actually win.

"Don't get cocky Higgins." Spot told him, grinning as well. "I'll be winning."

It was the funniest thing to watch. And the blonde haired girl in the back of the music hall was enjoying it. She didn't know the boys personally, but she did know that they were only at each others throats during their poker games. When the game ended, they would all be friends again, and that was the transition that she looked for.

"Let's make it more interesting." Racetrack started, knowing now that he would win. "I propose a bet." He said, looking around the table as the others rolled their eyes. He always did this.

"What're ya playing at?" Mush asked him, raising an eyebrow. Race smirked.

"I'm sayin' dat the winner of the game picks someone, and chooses a goil dat the newsboy of his choice must dance with by da end of the night, without force." Race stated, leaning back, staring at each of them happy with himself.

"You are the craziest bastard I've ever met." Spot said, his lips were upturned into a smile.

The boys continued to play. With every hand, their voices grew quieter and the girl that was watching from afar was out of her entertainment.

Finally, the game ended, and a winner was declared. The victor, Kid Blink Parker, acted as if nothing had happened. He wasn't cocky about his win, he wasn't overly excited, he just took all his winnings and stuffed them in his pocket, with a slight grin on his face. Racetrack on the other hand, was furious. Not particularly with Blink, but with himself and the whole table. No one was really happy, except Blink.

"Didn't ya say something bout a bet?" Mush asked Race, ignoring Blink putting his winnings in his pockets so delicately. It was rather irritating, but that's what Blink was aiming at. Race perked up and nodded.

"Yeah, yeah I did. Parker, ya has got ta pick one of us boys." Race started. All his anger seemed to be disappearing as he gained control over the entire table.

Blink looked over them, studying each closely. He had no clue what Racetrack was getting at, so he picked the newsboy that his eyes stopped on. "Jack." He said, pointing across the table at the leader of the Manhattan newsboys. Racetrack grinned.

"Poifect." He muttered to himself, then looked up at Blink. "Look around da room now. Find a goil that's alone." Race instructed. As it is fitting for our story, the one girl that caught Blink's one good eye was the blonde girl in the back of the room, sitting alone, watching a new act come on stage.

"That one, back there." Blink said, turning around.

"Don't all stare at her at once." Spot warned, seeing her look over at them. He smirked when they all turned their backs to her, twiddling their fingers. Once again, Race smirked at Blink, then to Jack.

"Nice choice." Racetrack observed the girl for a few moments before looking over at Jack again. "Dance wit 'er." He said bluntly, his voice thick and a small hint of amusement filled it. Jack blinked and stared at his small friend.

"Dance wit 'er? 'Ave ya lost all of da marbles ya still have!" He asked, dumbfounded. "I'se don't even know 'er." He pointed out.

"Which makes it much more fun, don't cha t'ink so fellas?" Race asked the opinion of the entire table. He received nods of approval and eager looks of anticipation.

"Dere ya 'ave it Jacky-boy." Spot said, grinning, getting used to the idea of having someone else, besides himself, pick up an unknown girl and take her home to have some fun.

"What? No, no, dis is so stupid! I'se ain't gonna walk up ta 'er an' ask 'er ta dance wit me! She'll t'ink I'm insane!" Jack exclaimed, practically jumping from his seat, catching the attention of the girl he was talking about. He gave a slight wave, and she turned away. "She hates me already ya bastards!" He said, lowering his voice.

"If ya do it, Blink'll 'ave ta give ya all his winnin's." Racetrack said, calmly and cooly, indulging in the fact that he had the whole table in the palm of his hand.

"Wha' da hell! I will not!" Blink said, very angrily.

"It's part of da game son of a bitch!" Race said, raising his voice a little bit when Blink dared to question his authority. No further objections were made.

Sighing, Jack scowled at the Italian boy, and then stood up, fixing the red bandana around his neck. He walked casually over to the girl, and sat in the vacant chair next to her, pretending to watch the current act on stage. When she didn't acknowledge his presence, he looked back helplessly to the table of boys, who all were turned around, their eyes fixed on him. He stuck up his nose, and made arm motions, telling them not to watch him. He saw them chuckle at his frantic attempts to get them to leave him alone, and they obliged. Heaving a sigh of relief, Jack ran a hand through his hair, and then turned back to the stage, jumping halfway out of his seat when he saw the girl next to him, staring at him, a smug smirk on her face, her arms crossed over her chest.

"May I ask what you are doing?" She asked, somewhat annoyed. Jack just gaped at her, not knowing what to say.

"I, well, ya see miss, I was jus' practicin'." He explained, smiling dully.

"Oh I see, practicing sign language for your friends over there? Is one of them deaf or something?" She asked him, raising a single eyebrow.

"Yeah, yeah, tha's it! Uh, ya see da one wit da red suspendahs? Dat's, uh, Aiden, yeah, Aiden. He can't hear none." He said, beaming just slightly, proud of his pathetic lie. She nodded skeptically at him, but didn't question him any further. Instead, she didn't bother with him, and turned away, focusing once again on Medda's latest performance.

Infuriated with her, Jack tapped her shoulder, not really knowing what he was going to say. She turned back around and opened her mouth to say something, but he put his hand over it.

"Dance wit me." He said. It was more of a command then a question, but she didn't argue. She was too shocked to say anything, therefore Jack took her by the hand, and started to dance with her. He felt extremely awkward, dancing with this girl that he didn't even know, but, he was getting Kid Blink Parker's poker winnings, which he knew to be a lot. Besides, songs only lasted a couple of minutes. No big deal. When the song ended, and Jack pulled away, the girl looked at him with utter fascination and curiosity.

"May I ask what that was all about?" She asked, looking up at him, for he was a few inches taller.

"Da dancin'?" He asked her, pretending to play dumb. She just nodded, standing sternly in front of him, waiting for an answer. He swallowed hard. "Well, ya see, it, uh, my own pleasure?" He said, asking more then telling her. She raised an eyebrow and then shook her head, walking past him.

"Thanks I guess." She said, bending down, looking down at her shoes, which were tattered and torn.

"Yeah, me pleasure." Jack said a little awkwardly. He turned around and saw all the boys looking at him once more. He raised his middle finger to them for just a brief second, and then lowered it, chuckling to himself. He started to walk to them, but then the girl behind him spoke up.

"You're not a very good dancer." She said, a little quietly, but louder then she herself expected. Jack spun around and looked at her, struck dumb. She stood up, her shoes had been removed from her feet. She was smirking at him and motioned with her head for him to follow her out onto the dance floor.

"S'cuse me miss?" Jack asked, astonished. The girl just smirked and made her way out onto the dance floor. She danced along with the music , attracting some stares because of the her complicated footwork. Her yellow pastel dress complimented her blonde hair. Jack could only stand in awe of her, still too dumbstruck to move. Finally she finished and stared smugly at Jack.

"Let's see ya do that." She said, seeming satisfied with herself. Regaining himself as quickly as he could, Jack thought quickly. He mirrored her smirk and slowly started to tap his foot along with the music. He didn't know how long he could fool her with his limited dancing talent. He knew a couple steps of his own that could match hers at least. If he repeated those steps over and over a couple times, perhaps she would admit she had been wrong about his dancing talent.

And so he began his dance, and for awhile it was good. The girl looked impressed and astonished at the same time. After a couple of cycles of the same steps though, she soon caught on. Jack figured she had by the expression on her face, so he stopped dancing and awaited her berating. It never came.

"Pretty good champ. Let's put em together shall we?" She proposed, holding out her hands to dance with him again. He smiled briefly and bowed politely, taking her outstretched hands.

"None of this formal fancy stuff, I don't know that." She told him, smiling a bit. He grinned and started dancing. He flung her around watching her laugh as he did so. Quickly the dancing steps were forgotten and Jack was twirling the girl round and round until she would fall into his arms. The music ended and all those who were dancing sat back down.

"Sorry I didn't catch ya name." Jack said to the blonde. She flashed him a smirk and bent down to put on her sorry excuse of shoes.

"I don't believe I threw it to you." She said, tying her shoes. Jack chuckled.

"Would ya?" He asked her.

"Just call me Knots." She told him, holding out her hand to him. Jack took it and shook it.

"Jack Kelly." He said. Turning around, Jack saw that the table where his friends had been sitting was not empty. "Dammit." He muttered under his breath.

"What?" Knots asked him.

"Nuttin. Jus' my dumb ass friends." He said slowly.

"Oh." She started, putting it together. "They left you with me... I see." She said, obviously hurt.

"No! I-I neva said dat!" Jack said. "I'se wouldn't mind hangin' wit ya." He said, smiling at her. She looked at him, skeptical.

"Prove it." She said, crossing her arms. Jack raised an eyebrow.

"Can I buy ya a drink miss?" He asked her, holding out his arm to her.

They'd been talking for about two hours now. The party was dying down, but Jack and Knots were hitting it off. Of course, alcohol was aiding Jack, but Knots was doing just fine for herself.

"Wow. What an evenin'." Jack remarked. Knots nodded and smiled, looking around. She couldn't believe that she had opened up so much to a total stranger. It was amazing, and she didn't know what had overcome her. He had this 'spell' over her. A spell that she didn't understand, couldn't control. So she didn't fight it, and went along with it.

"Everyone is leaving." She said slowly, looking over at him. He smirked and nodded, observing the room.

"Wanna get outta heah? I'se gotta find a friend bout some money fixer uppers anyways." He winked and got off the stool he was sitting on. Knots eyed him closely. Just because he had a hold on her, didn't mean she was going to let her guard down. She didn't like any funny business.

"Money fixer uppers?" She asked him, raising an eyebrow. He shrugged.

"I should be gettin' more den old Parker thought he'd be givin' me. Seein' as I've spent da _whole_ night wit cha." He smiled. She was appalled at this statement and her eyes got wide.

"W-what?" She asked him, mumbling over herself. He looked over at her, only just catching on to what she was implying. "Money? For, for hanging with me? She asked him, deeply hurt. She had trusted him. He just stared at her, not knowing what to say anymore. "You are getting paid for being with me? What, what were you gonna take me home and, and swoon me until I slept with you!" She asked, upset and hurt that she was just his toy that he could do whatever he pleased with.

"What? No! I would nevah!" He protested, but she wouldn't listen.

"I don't wanna hear it! Ya hear Jack Kelly! I see it now. You used me to get money from your, from your friends! If you can call them that, since they like to pry off of poor innocent girls like me!" She said, furious with him. She threw his coat at him, picked up her own and stormed out of Irving Hall. He was hot on her tail.

"Knots would ya jus' listen!" He called after her. She didn't answer. He called out to her a couple more times until she finally turned around. Her eyes were bloodshot, her face blotched and she was fuming, but there was a hint of sadness in her face.

"What? Listen to what!" She asked, bellowing out at him. "Don't you think you've hurt me enough!" She asked. He couldn't argue with that, but he tried.

"Can I jus' explain myself? Please!" He asked her. He had come to like her over the past couple hours, and the last thing he wanted was for her to get hurt.

"Fine. Fine, go ahead, explain." She said, crossing her arms over her chest, just waiting for him to explain to her why he would even think about doing this to her, to anyone.

"Righ', well, it was only supposed ta be a dance ya see. I was gonna get money fer dancin'! Dancin' wit ya an' dat's it." He started, then continued. "But, but den ya challenged me, an' den dey all were gone, an' I really liked hangin' wit cha, but I know why'se ya is mad at me." He said slowly. He was sucking up to a girl. He never did that. What was his problem!

"Just a dance?" She asked, not softening to him. "Still, you were being paid." She said softly, not looking at him. He sighed.

"Wasn't my idea." He tried to back himself up. She raised an eyebrow, considering him. "See, Race, my friend, he made us all bet on it. I'se got picked, you got picked. It was a set up." He explained cooly. "I'se neva ment fer anyone ta get hoit." He said honestly. She looked at him seriously.

"But, you still went along with it." She pointed out, wiping some tears from her cheek. He nodded, blushing slightly.

"Yeah. Yeah I did." He said slowly. "An' I'm sorry. An' I don't apologize often, so would ya accept it?" He asked her. She raised an eyebrow, and didn't answer for a long time.

"Alright." She said slowly. He wasn't expecting that, and gaped at her.

"Wha'?" He asked her slowly.

"Alright. I accept your apology." She said bluntly, watching him closely. "Do you not give apologies because you're afraid they'll be rejected?" She asked by the look on his face. Jack just smiled at her.

"Nah. I jus' don't apologize." He winked at her and then looked down at his feet. "I'll be seein' ya then." He said slowly.

"Tomorrow would be good." She said slowly, not realizing that he wasn't really implying that they see each other again, for real. But she took it that way, and Jack Kelly wasn't one to complain.

"Yeah, tomorrow would be great." He said, smirking up at her.

**Authors Note: **_Right. So this was a spur of the moment, spontaneous inspiration thing way back in December. I finished it around end of February, and simply forgot about it.I hope you liked it. Like I said, it's dedicated to my friend, Rose. Please excuse any spelling or grammar errors, I'm not that great in grammar. _

_Please Review. I would appreciate it :) _


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